Stephen Hill Ready to Make Second-Year Jump

[whodeawhodat]

Agreed, Baltimore should have dumped Torre Smith after he dropped a few passes his rookie season....

[slats]

I like Stephen Hill, but he was drafted as a project, and being in his second offensive system in two years probably isn't going to help him. I expect his detractors will have a lot of ammo to be just be themselves. 

 

But he can surprise if the Jets get even average QB play, and Mornhinweg is better than we hope. 

[T0mShane]

I like Stephen Hill, but he was drafted as a project, and being in his second offensive system in two years probably isn't going to help him. I expect his detractors will have a lot of ammo to be just be themselves.

But he can surprise if the Jets get even average QB play, and Mornhinweg is better than we hope.

So negative.

[kelticwizard]

I like Stephen Hill, but he was drafted as a project, and being in his second offensive system in two years probably isn't going to help him. I expect his detractors will have a lot of ammo to be just be themselves. 

 

But he can surprise if the Jets get even average QB play, and Mornhinweg is better than we hope. 

 

 

Mornhinweig, with his proven record as offensive coordinator, is very likely to be an upgrade over Sparano.  I don't think an upgrade in coaching impedes the progress of a second year player.

[Sperm Edwards]

Mornhinweig, with his proven record as offensive coordinator, is very likely to be an upgrade over Sparano.  I don't think an upgrade in coaching impedes the progress of a second year player.

 

Agree.  As long as the coordinator isn't such an obvious downgrade - which MM isn't - Hill should still get at least a little better.  He wouldn't be the first player to improve from year 1 to year 2 after his rookie seasons' OC was replaced.

 

Plus there's sooooo much room for improvement.

[BurnleyJet]

We where so bad in 2012, that I think it seems to have perminately clouded our view of the Jets Offence. Mornhinweig will be a massive upgrade.

We've beefed up the oline. The running backs Holmes should be back, and I think Hill will be a lot better.

Im sure I read Mornhinweig worst Offensive

showing was the 15th Ranked Offence in the NFL while at the Eagles, plus his best, two second ranked O's. Granted with better talent but when he started at the Eagles he had Todd Pinkston at WR. A player so bad he has his own referance in the Urban dictionary. Hill will be fine, you can't teach 6"4 and 4.3 40.

[SayNoToDMC]

collinsworth said he was one of the most raw rookie WR's he'd ever seen last year

so he really has no where to go but up

This can't be true. If it where why would Tanny and Rex pencil him in a starter before they could finish the phone call pumping him up about being a Jet? I think he probably had a hand/brain injury we didn't hear about, Rex likes to keep things like that in house.

[SayNoToDMC]

Where was Hill ranked before he and his 22 catches ran a 4.3 in shorts?

I can tell you he wasn't in front if a jugs machine

[slats]

Mornhinweig, with his proven record as offensive coordinator, is very likely to be an upgrade over Sparano.  I don't think an upgrade in coaching impedes the progress of a second year player.

The only impedance I see, and I think it's pretty significant, is having to learn a completely new system. Gifted physical players tend to blossom once they get it mentally. If he were in the second year of the same system, the mental part would be a lot easier. Mornhinweg is a major upgrade in and of himself, but it's going to be a learning process for the whole offense.

And speaking of the whole offense, there still really isn't a QB on it.

I like Stephen Hill a lot, and still think he'll be a good one. Just pointing out that the circumstances for potentially breaking out aren't ideal.

[The Crusher]

The only impedance I see, and I think it's pretty significant, is having to learn a completely new system. Gifted physical players tend to blossom once they get it mentally. If he were in the second year of the same system, the mental part would be a lot easier. Mornhinweg is a major upgrade in and of himself, but it's going to be a learning process for the whole offense.

And speaking of the whole offense, there still really isn't a QB on it.

I like Stephen Hill a lot, and still think he'll be a good one. Just pointing out that the circumstances for potentially breaking out aren't ideal.

 

 

This is true but a couple things that might help is..

 

1. A QB that throws the ball to him and not behind him or over his head.

 

2.   A healthy Santonio who may draw the teams # 1 corner.

 

3. A running back teams have to think about to set up the play action.  Might help him get separation.

 

4. Some of those sticky Nike gloves I bought Little Sal

[kelticwizard]

Some wide receivers who came up before the gloves say that those gloves make catching the ball hugely easier.

[BroadwayJoe12]

I can tell you he wasn't in front if a jugs machine

 

He actually dominated every receiving  drill at the combine and the buzz was that he looked so fluid catching the ball that it made a lot of teams put him higher on the board.  Everyone knew that he was raw, but they were all saying how he just was snatching the ball out of the air and not dropping anything. I've said it a few times on here before, but I think it was the speed of the game and him being overwhelmed that caused all the issues; he was looking to do too much too soon before just catching the ball.   Receivers usually don't blow up until their 3rd year anyways; if the buffalo game is any indication of what he's capable of, I think we'll see a much improved HIll this year.

[TnT]

I think Hill WILL develop into a stud...it is so early for someone that needed/s as much work as he did/does.

And I think you miserable c#nt fans that already wrote him off should seed yourselves in a face smacking contest when he becomes a consistent threat.

[SenorGato]

The thing I like about Hill is that when he does catch the ball he does it naturally. He already catches a slant better and more naturally than Braylon Edwards ever has. He's one of those guys who translates his workout numbers to the field pretty damn well from what I saw, though I'm sure a 6'4" guy will get it for not "looking" like a 4.4 guy. 

 

I'm so ready to be a fan of this guy but obviously I need him to play well. Another positive thing is that he only caught 8 less passes as a rookie than he did in his whole college career. 

[LionelRichie]

The thing I like about Hill is that when he does catch the ball he does it naturally.

 

I'm not sure where you are getting this from but we must be watching completely different players with the same number.  

 

If anything, my biggest complaint about Hill is that he is a "body catcher".   I'm sure in practice and without defenders around he catches the ball with his hands but for whatever reason he doesn't have that same confidence in the games.   

 

I'd be ok with a drop every now and then but he really needs to catch the ball with this hands if he ever wants to be a good NFL wr.  

[SenorGato]

Disagree in that I don't believe he is all body catcher and I don't think body catching is all bad all the time anyway.

[BroadwayJoe12]

I'm not sure where you are getting this from but we must be watching completely different players with the same number.

If anything, my biggest complaint about Hill is that he is a "body catcher". I'm sure in practice and without defenders around he catches the ball with his hands but for whatever reason he doesn't have that same confidence in the games.

I'd be ok with a drop every now and then but he really needs to catch the ball with this hands if he ever wants to be a good NFL wr.

Besides Fitzy, there's barely a receiver in the league who catches solely with their hands. Watch CJ, AJ Green, Julie jones et al and you'll see a lot of body catching mixed in. Not saying they do it exclusively, but honestly, besides Fitzy there's hardly a true WR you'll see catch it just with his hands.

[The Crusher]

I think Hill WILL develop into a stud...it is so early for someone that needed/s as much work as he did/does.

And I think you miserable c#nt fans that already wrote him off should seed yourselves in a face smacking contest when he becomes a consistent threat.

 

 

LOL

[TnT]

LOL

Sorry, needed a snickers

[The Crusher]

Sorry, needed a snickers

 

Quality posting I might give you one.   Uhhh   um...  like if I had 56 of them.  

[TnT]

Quality posting I might give you one. Uhhh um... like if I had 56 of them.

Jeeezzzz, Jerome Bettis over here!!!

[T0mShane]

Somebody tell me again how Rex chose to start this kid from Day One?

No longer under pressure, Stephen Hill ready to break out in second season

By Conor Orr

Sanjay Lal keeps a yearly calendar in his binder marked, to the day, with what Stephen Hill has done and what he will need to learn.

Hill was arguably one of the most physically gifted players in the 2012 NFL Draft, taken in the second round by the Jets. He is a player who, Lal says, is more polished in technique but raw instinctively. A football mind-set needs to be fostered.

This is why there are special film sessions, workout plans and exercises. There are special meetings with quizzes, coverage recognition and route specificity.

"Reps and reps and reps," Lal, Jets wide receivers coach, said. "Then, he starts to get a feel for what you’re doing. The more he learns why, the more feel he’ll have."

But then there are the things Hill must do himself; obstacles he must overcome without the help of a coach or calendar. Last year, he encountered the typical potholes — nagging injuries, an overload of information in a maddening environment — and the not-so-typical. At one point last season a fan once obtained his personal cell phone number and harassed him, via text message, about his uneven play. Hill slogged through games injured, desperate to keep pace and shoulder more responsibility in a woeful offense. He disliked having to explain himself to reporters.

It amounted to a rookie season with flashes of both brilliance and frustration. Hill can smile now when he admits how he felt, like he was simply lost and running in space.

"It’s not hard, it’s just annoying," Hill told The Star-Ledger on a quiet afternoon last week in Florham Park. "We’re always on ESPN for something, and it was just a lot. It put pressure on learning, and then having to explain if I messed up, so that’s where most of the pressure was.

"It probably did throw me off during games, you’re just out there running. That’s what it felt like. I was out there running but I didn’t understand the whole football concept."

With the Jets searching for salvation in the passing game, Hill knows he will need to play a bigger role, especially with Santonio Holmes on the mend and no new rookies piping in from the draft. It is a responsibility that, after his trial run in 2012, he says he is ready for. He says he is bigger, stronger and faster than before. The strained LCL that preceded the knee surgery that ended his season in December has healed.

A week removed from his 22nd birthday, he is talking about catch and yardage goals for the first time. He says he’s pushing aside mere potential, and shooting for the Pro Bowl.

"Even Jerry Rice in his rookie year, he dropped balls and people booed him," said Hill, who caught 21 passes for 252 yards and three TDs in 11 games last season. "… I can’t hear what people think because this is my job. It’s not their job."

CAUGHT ON QUICKLY

Hill toyed with the Bills in his NFL debut, hauling in five passes for 89 yards and two touchdowns amid a 48-28 Jets victory.

For Lal, seeing this was an assurance that his plan was working. It was also a concern — with a player in development, too much early success could derail the finite technical work needed to bring Hill’s game along.

"It was good and bad," Lal said. "You love that it’s happening, but you tell the player — hey now, it’s not going to be like this next week. Buffalo played you in free access, now the rest of the league says ‘If we play Stephen in free access he’s going to kill us."

He told Hill: "There will be a plan next week to not let you catch five for 89 and two touchdowns."

Sure enough, Hill was held without a catch the following week against Pittsburgh. As a hamstring injury began to gnaw at his wary legs, he went without a grab in Week 3 as well, exiting the game early.

He caught one more touchdown pass on the season in a victory over the Colts, but the year was more memorable for a few untimely drops. When asked about one in particular — a crucial third down against New England where, Lal says, Hill simply took his eye off the ball — Hill said he was glad he was put in that situation despite being made to feel like he lost the game for his team.

"As the weeks went on, it got worse and worse," Hill said. "I got injured and that set me back, too. I just took that whole year as a learning experience."

In the eyes of his coaches, it was an internship of sorts. Lal treats Hill’s case similar to that of Darrius Heyward-Bey, another high-talent project he undertook at his previous stop as Oakland’s receivers coach. When the Raiders drafted the speedy receiver, Lal presented a step-by-step plan not unlike the one Hill is on now.

Heyward-Bey’s trajectory under Lal looked like this:

• Year 1: 9 catches, 124 yards, 1 touchdown

• Year 2: 26 catches, 366 yards, 1 touchdown

•Year 3: 64 catches, 975 yards, 4 touchdowns

Lal hopes sticking by the plan will yield similar results for Hill.

"We had a systematic plan," Lal said. "You saw the progression, and that was really enjoyable. Honestly, it hurt to not continue that. It hurt to leave (Oakland). Every exit meeting, we were talking about the next step."

A LEARNING CURVE

Hill used to hate the complements.

During the pre-Draft workout process, scouts and executives would treat Hill like a fourth-grader learning linear algebra. Any progress is worth celebrating.

The stigma of coming from an option offense in college (Georgia Tech) left him with the impression that teams thought he wasn’t intelligent, that he hadn’t been playing the game his entire life.

"I didn’t like the way that, when people saw me run a route, they congratulated me," Hill said. "I’ve been running routes since high school, I just went to a different college.

"We ran a lot of routes in high school. I played with Geno Smith in a high school all-star game and we ran all the NFL routes. Like, it’s the same routes. I didn’t like that. Just tell me what to do."

Last year only stoked the fire. He went from being the project player to the receiver without hands. The "drops guy."

It led him to delete his Twitter account, where piles of mentions buzzed straight to his phone telling him he wasn’t good enough. He took down his Instagram soon after that. He changed his cell phone number when a fan began harassing him, telling him it was Hill’s fault the team wasn’t better.

"It was weird, I don’t know how he got my number," Hill said. "Then Twitter got bad, for me. It just got so bad I deleted everything."

He knew the coaches had confidence in him, as did his teammates. But as a 21-year-old rookie, the world is disturbingly small when seemingly every ring on his phone is a friend calling to ask why he was being trashed on television, or when every highlight is a reel of footballs whistling through his hands or miscommunication on routes.

He gave himself some time in the offseason to return home to Georgia and tune it all out. He knew that expectations — the nutty fans, the press, the analysts — would never stop spinning around him. He would have to handle it.

Soon after he began his rehab, his head coach put the league, and Hill, on notice.

"It needs to be a lot better than year one because Stephen is a guy that has a lot of ability," Ryan said of Hill in February at the NFL Scouting Combine. "His ceiling is really high. Like many guys as rookies, many receivers coming into this league as rookies, a lot of inconsistency. Some weeks he was outstanding, other weeks not so much, but I expect him to improve by leaps and bounds going into year two."

READY TO BREAK OUT

Last week, Hill entered the room fresh from a practice clutching a bottled workout drink.

He says he is more relaxed now, and cannot wait to operate in new offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg’s offense, an aggressive system that racks up yardage in the passing game and unleashes All-Pro wideouts.

"We gotta get that whole quarterback situation handled," Hill said, laughing about his team’s five-way battle for the starting QB job. "We have to get that handled first before we start throwing it really deep."

Lal instructed Hill to begin watching more tape of the great wide receivers to prepare — see how every move Rice makes has a purpose, how Andre Johnson controls and adjusts his body, how Anquan Boldin blocks downfield.

He tells Hill that he can have all those tools and combine them into one receiver.

Hill takes that as a compliment, and not as a burden anymore.

"Stephen is so gifted," Lal said. "He can be whoever he wants to be."

[JiFtheOracle]

Stupid Rex.  Starts him week one and he goes out and catches 5 passes for 89 yards and 2 TD's.  Totally ruined the kid. 

 

Now what? 

[Lizard King]

"We gotta get that whole quarterback situation handled," Hill said, laughing about his team’s five-way battle for the starting QB job. "We have to get that handled first before we start throwing it really deep."

#omgcircus

[T0mShane]

Stupid Rex. Starts him week one and he goes out and catches 5 passes for 89 yards and 2 TD's. Totally ruined the kid.

Now what?

Yeah, if you just discount the other 15/16ths of the season, Rex would be totally vindicated.

[T0mShane]

Dubious merge, btw. Costello's article was fluff. Orr's had some interesting insights into Hill's struggles.

[#27TheDominator]

Somebody tell me again how Rex chose to start this kid from Day One?

 

 

 

I think he fit what Sparano was trying to do. I hate Sparano and the whole idea, but I think he wanted to block and take some shots down the field. It's simplified, but that's my general belief. Hill is perfect for that. He has the potential to be wide open and to stretch the D.  He is scarier than he is good and I think that Sparano wanted fear.  It didn't work and I don't think either of us are surprised, but that's what I think.  You can blame Rex for that and I'll buy it, but I think it fits "the Plan" whatever that may have been. 

[T0mShane]

I think he fit what Sparano was trying to do. I hate Sparano and the whole idea, but I think he wanted to block and take some shots down the field. It's simplified, but that's my general belief. Hill is perfect for that. He has the potential to be wide open and to stretch the D. He is scarier than he is good and I think that Sparano wanted fear. It didn't work and I don't think either of us are surprised, but that's what I think. You can blame Rex for that and I'll buy it, but I think it fits "the Plan" whatever that may have been.

Which is worse, really, when you consider that Rex chose Sparano. So he didn't just screw up with a player, he screwed up at a player and his coordinator.

[#27TheDominator]

Which is worse, really, when you consider that Rex chose Sparano. So he didn't just screw up with a player, he screwed up at a player and his coordinator.

 

 

I don't agree with this.  I don't see Hill as a screw up (yet).  IMO he fit what Sparano wanted to do.  Sparano was pretty terrible, but I don't see how having Hill was a screw up or made matters worse with Sparano.  The kid was hurt most of the year and I think he was pretty much as advertised.  I can't see bashing the Hill pick much.  If I am correct, he was picked to do something, he did that.  No reason to bash.  The coordinator should be bashed from here until doomsday, as far as I'm concrned.  The only real downside is that HIll was a bit of a project, but I'm not sure how well he'll fit Mornhinweg's system.